Pomegranate: An eco-friendly source for energy storage devices

Abstract

With an increasing demand for energy and concerns about the environment, scientists are trying to find a better way to generate green energy and store the generated energy efficiently. Biowaste could be an attractive source for the preparation of active materials for energy storing devices. In this project, a shell of pomegranate was used to prepare high surface area carbon for supercapacitor applications. The dry powder of pomegranate was chemically activated using various ratios of pomegranate and activating agent to produce carbon with a range of properties. The unactivated pomegranate-based carbon's surface area was 40 m2/g, which improved to 1459, 1737, and 2189 m2/g upon chemical activation using 1:1, 1:2, and 1:3 ratios of pomegranate: activating agent, respectively. The energy storage capacity was calculated using galvanostatic charge-discharge measurements, and the highest specific capacitance of 190 F/g at 1 A/g was observed for PG-2 (1:2 ratio of pomegranate: activating agent) carbon. Using the electrode, the symmetric supercapacitor devices were fabricated utilizing various electrolytes (aqueous, organic, and ionic liquid electrolytes). The highest energy density of 8.8, 39, and 68 Wh/kg were obtained for aqueous, organic, and ionic liquid electrolytes, respectively. On the other hand, the highest power density of 3950, 8943, and 11,316 W/kg have been achieved for the pomegranate-based carbon in aqueous, organic, and ionic liquid electrolytes, respectively. Our research suggests that pomegranate-based carbon could be an attractive material for the fabrication of energy storage devices.

Publication Title

Surface and Coatings Technology

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